York holds off Clover to win rivalry game

York’s defense was the difference in the Cougars’ 21-10 win over Clover in the renewal of their York County rivalry.

The Cougars improved to 4-1 overall, despite committing four turnovers.

In the first quarter Clover capitalized on a fumbled punt, which led to a 31-yard touchdown run by Blue Eagles running back Semaj Lakin.

It only took 18 seconds for the Cougars to respond as quarterback Tanner McKinney connected with wide receiver Ladarius Allison for an 80-yard catch and run to tie the score.

The Blue Eagles had two opportunities in the second quarter to score off good field position from an interception and a fumble, but could not convert.

After a Clover punt, the Cougars marched 91 yards and milked the clock before scoring on a fourth-down, 16-yard touchdown reception by Allison for a 14-10 lead before halftime.

The Cougars started the second half by taking the ball 80 yards for a touchdown, capped by Stephen Oglesby’s two-yard run, to go up 21-10.

York head coach Bobby Carroll said, “We came out here a little flat, we didn’t execute well. We had four turnovers, but our kids played great. We held them to 10 points, and we shut them out in the second half. We weren’t prepared in the first quarter and took Clover a little lightly, but we have to take care of the football.”

Turning point

When Clover punted back to York in the second quarter – after failing to capitalize on a Cougar fumble – it was all York. The Cougars scored 14 unanswered points.

Star contributors

York’s Allison had two touchdowns and 139 receiving yards in the first half. On defense, Shamari Williams was a monster, sacking the quarterback three times and making plays all over the field.

Carroll said, “We have a bunch good players out here, Ladarius made a bunch of good plays tonight and so did Shamari. But we’ll go back tomorrow to see who was making the plays.”

On deck

Next week, York travels to Richland Northeast. Clover takes on Nation Ford.

Box score

York 21, Clover 10

York;7;7;7;0;-;21

Clover;10;0;0;0;-;10

Scoring summary

First quarter

CHS – Semaj Lakin 31 run (Nick Sciba kick good), 5:58

YHS – Ladarius Allison 80 pass from Tyler McKinney (Beck Johnston kick good), 5:40

CHS – Nick Sciba 39 field goal, 0:04

Second quarter

YHS – Ladarius Allison 16 pass from Tyler McKinney (Beck Johnston kick good), 1:38

Third quarter

YHS – Stephen Oglesby 2 run (Beck Johnston kick good), 9:10

Fourth quarter

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING YHS: Joe Wade 16-91; Stephen Oglesby 11-35. CHS: Semaj Lakin 14-70; David Hall 4-29; Garrett Miller 15-27.

PASSING YHS: Tanner McKinney 11-18-1 212 yards. CHS: Garrett Miller 13-27-1 112 yards.

RECEIVING YHS: Ladarius Allison 10-190. CHS: Heze Massey 8-72; Jaylin Lane 2-25.

RECORDS York: 4-1 Clover 3-2

This story was originally published September 22, 2017 at 10:58 PM with the headline "York holds off Clover to win rivalry game."